


That Ugly Business Called Dating

by crystalemi



Series: We Could Happen [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Awkwardness, I had a bit too much fun with this one, M/M, bruce is pure evil, partly betaed, steve is a cutiepie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-18
Updated: 2014-12-03
Packaged: 2018-02-26 04:45:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,713
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2638562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crystalemi/pseuds/crystalemi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve, Bruce and that time Steve accidentally asked Bruce out.</p><p>(In which Steve is awkward, Bruce gets off on it, Natasha is a good Bro, Steve bets ten bucks <i>and wins</i>, Clint names the chapters and the author is stuck with a rom-com and no Tony - yet)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. No Homo

**Author's Note:**

> This is companion to "Wish I stayed", it might not make sense on its own. As I said before, I have most of the dialogues written down, I just need to fill in descriptions, so I should be posting chapter two very soon.  
> Kudos make me work faster, just saying.

“Is it socially unacceptable these days to ask a man out for coffee?”

The strange thing is, they’re already having a coffee at the kitchen isle and Bruce doesn’t even particularly care for coffee, and he’s only having one because Tony has kept him up for two days straight on a science binge. Steve presence has been a balm up to that question, but he’s been such a sweetheart, making him a very long coffee with a ton of whipped cream on top and he has even put a praline in a muffin cup, he really couldn’t say no to him, no one has ever put so much effort in doing something for him… but of course it comes at a price.

“Are you still trying to get me to agree to your ‘ _getting acclimatized’_ plan?”

He asks with a sigh. Steve blushes and looks down at the floor, caught red handed. Bruce has no idea how S.H.I.E.L.D. think it’s a good idea to have him as a spy of all things, but he won’t be the one bringing up the issue. Steve, in his innocent desire to please – and not come off as pushy – tries to lie: “No?”

Then he blushes even harder when Bruce eyebrow raises, and he doesn’t have to talk for Steve to hear his “Really?”, and Steve is lovely because he looks down again and puts his hands on the isle, nervously fidgeting with them.

Bruce sighs again, as Steve finds his courage and boldly asks: “Are you really against it?”

It would be cruel for anyone to test Steve’s trust and Bruce wishes he was a better man, but he can’t let go of this opportunity of seeing Steve heat up even more. He loves how Captain America is all tough and fearless on the field and then Steve Rogers has absolutely no idea how to talk to a possible sexual interest. He’s not even sure Steve realizes he’s panicking because he sees Bruce as a sexual interest, he probably thinks he just wants to hang out with someone that doesn’t grate on his nerves.

“It depends. Are you asking me out on a date or is it business?” he asks, and watches Steve grow as red as a tomato. He stutters and almost bites his tongue. Bruce can’t believe how easy it is to fluster him and he’d love to see him try and consciously ask someone he likes out. A part of him he thought long dead, wishes he’d be that someone.

“Neither?” Steve hesitantly answers, and Bruce can’t take it anymore. He removes his glasses and presses thumb and index finger against his closed eyes and the bridge of his nose. He sighs for the millionth time, and he knows he's already won over, because it doesn’t matter how stupid an idea they’ve got, he just can’t say no to any of the Avengers.

“It has the potential to get extremely awkward, Steve.” He warns in a last attempt to discourage him, but Steve smiles brightly and hands him another praline.

“My life’s been awkward since 1918, I will survive.”

Bruce chuckles, faintly happy.

However, after a few minutes of companionable silence, Bruce sees Steve fidgeting and raises an eyebrow in askance. Steve blushes – again, and it never stops being lovely – and loudly clears his voice.

“Uhm, you got a place in mind? It’s on me!” he awkwardly asks, trying not to look at Bruce, but failing when he groans at his question. Bruce truly hopes this sinking ship isn’t going to put a dent in their working relationship.

“Closest café to the tower.” He answer, keeping in check the umpteenth sigh that tries to steal its way in their conversation. A shy smile comes up on Steve’s lips and Bruce can see a bit of Captain America showing when the guy, jokingly states:

 “Deal, it’s a date.”

“I’m already regretting it.”

But he really isn’t.


	2. Bro 'Tasha

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I said Clint got a hold of the title giving, he's not sorry.  
> Also, thanks to anyone that reads and especially who leaves kudos. I suck at writing and romcoms are not my style, so it means a lot to me that you people appreciate. Thanks <3

“Natasha, answer?”

Steve is sitting on her bed, not even looking in the vague direction of the walk-in closet, in which she’s changing from her favourite yoga pants and the hoodie she stole from Clint, into a red tight dress that she hates already, but it was a present of her late mission and she is set to get it over with that night – and Steve isn’t the only gentleman left, apparently.

“What’s the question?”

She asks back, getting Steve to close the zip on the back, just because she loves to see him glare at her. Poor baby, he’s trying.

She watches carefully the way the dress moves on her body in the mirror, and tries which pace to use to have it rise up on her thighs, and when she notice that the dress, after all, works nicely while standing and walking, she sits next to Steve, unnecessarily closer than what Steve would have considered proper.

“I bet ten bucks you already know.” He mutters, giving up and observing how her dress rises up in all the different positions she takes. He frowns and Natasha smiles, wondering if some poor girl has tried seducing him and he’s noticing just now.

When he looks back at her face, she starts thinking what he could possibly thinks she already knows. Steve has the bad habit of believing she’s omnipresent and knows everything that goes on in the world, which she obviously doesn’t but it won’t be her the one who'll shatter his belief. Moreover, it's oddly pleasant to be hold in such a high position by Captain America.

“I only know it must be embarrassing.” She tries, hoping he still goes to her when he can’t talk to anyone else, or well, Sam. He usually talks to Sam about everything unless it’s stupid and embarrassing. He blushes, Natasha smirks proudly. “Hella embarrassing if you can’t ask it and… do you have a date?”

“Yeah, kinda. It was a joke, turns out it’s not for me?” He stutters, Natasha’s smirk grows in size.

Flustering Steve is her favourite activity.

It’s actually all of the Avengers’ favourite activity. Clint and Tony _bonded_ over it.

“God, Steve, what are you, fifteen?” she asks, watching his cheeks go redder.

“This isn’t helping.” He moans and there’s something in him that begs her to drop the teasing and help out.

“It’s just a date.” She adds, he moans _in pain_.

“This one’s cool.” Steve wrings his hands in his lap, looking away from her. Uh-oh.

“Is it that nurse turned SHIELD turned CIA agent? Sharon, was it?”

Steve shakes his head, suddenly looking exhausted.

“Old story, over it, it’s…” he mutters, hiding his face in his hands. After a few seconds he exhales loudly, and drop his hands back in his lap. “I’ve read sex is more libertine than back in my days.” He changes tactic and Natasha for once is uncertain of where Steve is leading them.

“Didn’t need to read, you know Tony” she tries, a perfect eyebrow raising in confusion.

“Yeah but Tony isn’t… romantically interested in a man?” Steve answers, going red again. He isn’t watching her, he’s staring at his feet, and he looks like he’s waiting for a sentence. He might even be, but Natasha’s not a judge in times of peace.

“Is it Bruce?” She asks, Steve looks up at her, confusion written on his face.

“How-” he starts, almost indignant, but seems to rethink his question on the basis of his fierce conviction that Natasha knows everything. “Forget it, but yeah.”

Natasha can't help it as she lets the left part of his lips quirk up in a ghost of a smile.

“As long as you don’t cheat on him. I heard the Hulk’s quite the jealous type.”

“I wouldn’t cheat on anyone, least of all, Bruce!” Steve exclaims, half indignant, half horrified. Natasha just barely restrains herself from rolling her eyes.

“I was joking, Cap.”

“You should stop joking with a straight face.”

Natasha sighs and ignores Steve’s pout. He’s a grown man, he's not supposed to look adorable.

“Fine, so you got it bad for Bruce and you’re going on a date with him?”

“That’s pretty much it.” Steve nods, avoiding eye contact.

“Where’s your problem?” Natasha asks hoping that Steve will just tell her. She gets up and takes out her make-up case, so that maybe Steve will feel more at ease if she’s doing something else entirely and not staring at him, waiting for him to talk about his feelings. It works, because after a whole minute of fidgeting, Steve talks.

“I don’t think he knows I was serious because I wasn’t and…” ha admits, watching as she applies eyeliner with a steady hand. “I have no idea how to flirt with a woman, I’m not even sure flirting with a man is ethically okay.” He mutters.

Natasha feels a headache coming on, it must be hard living in 2014 with the same ethics and values of the ‘40s. She sighs, knowing without a doubt she’ll be hearing a lot about this disaster waiting to happen later, once the date is over and Steve has no one else to tell how much he hates the awkward idiot he becomes around women. Or any possible partner, apparently.

“It is. I only have one advice, Steve, _don’t_ be a knight in shining armour. It’s Bruce, you know how he is.” She says, hoping against hope he won’t hold the door open or do any other stupid thing of the ‘40s.

Steve just blinks owlishly at her. Natasha wonders what made him think a spy and assassin would be a good confidant. She’s never even had a steady, _sane_ relationship before.

“That’s not helping either.” He mutters and this time Natasha looks up at the ceiling, while putting on her killer lipstick.

What did she do to deserve so many dorks in her life, anyway?

Assassin, right.

“It is, now out, I need to be gone in ten.”

She shoos him out of her room, shutting the door behind him with a loud bang.

A few minutes either, while she’s putting black polish on her nails she hears, muffled from the door:

“Hey, what about my ten bucks?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I do believe Steve thinks Natasha's a good confident, please, blame the Winter Soldier movie.


	3. Maybe a lil' Homo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was betaread by the lovely [seekingsquake](http://archiveofourown.org/users/seekingsquake), let's all take a minute to appreciate her work because I swear she made this look like actual English.  
> Thanks, dear ♥

“So, this is awkward.” Steve isn’t even blushing - he considers this a victory - and Bruce is just staring at his coffee with murder in his eyes and scientifical wonder on his face. Steve is inclined to agree, but he’s fidgeting and the silence is dumb and he has no idea how to do this dating thing that isn’t really a date and he started with the wrong foot because he kept the door open for Bruce and Natasha had just said the day before not to do that.

They’ve talked about the weather, work - or saving the world and having shawarma or other take-out - and they even talked about Tony. And then silence. The horrible nasty awkward kind of silence, to be precise.

“Told you,” Bruce mutters and Steve wants to snap that he did all the actual talking, thank you very much for the help.

“It’s still fine,” he answers instead, maybe a bit more defensively than he intended.

“It really isn’t.” Bruce has this tiny smile on his lips that has Steve relaxing a bit. He has no idea what it means, but it looks playful and Steve can go with it; at least, he thinks, it’s not a lost cause yet.

“The coffee’s awful,” he states, because it’s true and he doesn’t care (too much) that the waitress hears him while she’s passing close to their table. She shrugs and smiles anyway.

“Agreed,” Bruce mumbles, going back to stare at his coffee, maybe thinking of bringing some back to his lab to examine it because honestly, something must have gone terribly wrong with the making of it, and Steve is ready to testify under oath that during the war they had better coffee.

Still, he’s wary of telling Bruce, as he’s not comfortable with talks of science. He wasn’t the brightest crayon in the box during the ‘40s, he knows for a fact that science is not something he’ll catch up with anytime soon, or ever. Still, he loves hearing Bruce talk.

“You know, for a guy that could talk his mouth off about neutrons, you’ve been awfully quiet. I’m offended,” he half jokes, hoping it will still get Bruce to talk.

“I’m sorry, Steve, I promise you’re more important than neutrons.” Bruce smiles and his eyes are bright with mischief and his skin is wrinkled around them.

“Except I’m not. I don’t want to imagine what a universe without neutrons would be like,” Steve jokes, and he earns a bigger smile, the mischief in Bruce eyes, however, leaves space to be thoughtful, so Steve isn’t surprised at the answer he gets: “It wouldn’t be at all.”

“That’s the short version, yeah?” He tries to joke again, and one corner of Bruce’s mouth quirks up. Steve counts that as a victory too.

“Short and inaccurate, yes,” is the answer he gets, and Steve isn’t sure if he’s joking or not. In the end, Steve thanks him,  not entirely certain he shouldn’t be offended.

“You’re welcome.” Bruce smiles again and Steve notices all of a sudden just how much he’s been staring at his lips. Somehow, he manages not to light up in embarrassment.

“I want to run away,” Steve states, feeling ill at ease after a whole five minutes of awkward silence.

“That’s a reaction I get from time to time.” Bruce has that self deprecating air about him that Steve hates with a passion and he definitely wants to split his head against the table, and he would if he was sure he wouldn’t break it. The table, that is.

“Do people die of embarrassment?” he asks, looking up at the ceiling. He suddenly thinks of Peggy and all the flirting gone terribly wrong with her too, so he adds, “No wait don’t answer, that was a stupid question, I’m obviously still alive.”

Bruce chuckles. Bruce chuckles. Steve looks back at him with wide eyes and pleasure written all over his face. He made Bruce chuckle, nothing is lost yet, they can still come out as winners.

“I’m having fun,” Bruce says, only slightly sarcastic. It doesn’t matter to Steve, he’ll take it as confession, sarcasm included.

“I’m glad you’re having fun at my expense,” he bites back, mostly sarcastic, but he makes sure (well, he tries his hardest) to show with his body language he’s not serious. He telegraphs his movements for Bruce, making it all very dramatic - what with the pout, his arms closing against his chest and his ankle finding a nice place on his knee.

“Me too.” Bruce smiles kindly and somewhat happy, so Steve keeps up the pretence.

“I bet it's not uncommon to see two guys on a date, and one of them is dying while the other's laughing!” he states as a matter-of-fact. Something in Bruce’s eyes sparkle in mischief and there’s a slight grin on his lips.

“Yes, dates sometimes are like that,” he says, and Steve’s eyes grow wide when he processes what he’s just said.

“This is a date.” He states, but there’s a question not hidden too well in there that Bruce surely picks up without effort. He looks at him, all mischief gone. Steve has to swallow around a lump that has taken residence in his throat.

“Yes, Steve, if you want it to be.” Bruce has a lovely way of flustering Steve that everyone -except for Steve himself - appreciates. He just says things calmly and there’s something in his body language that says he already knows it won’t be a positive answer while at the same time making him feel like he’s already said the same thing for hours. Steve isn’t sure if it’s patronizing or just Bruce’s way of dealing with things he doesn’t like.

“I want you to want it to be a date, too. Don’t wanna-” he grunts, looking for the right word “pressure you.”

“You aren’t, but Steve, just so you know what to expect, I might never be able to have sex and I don’t think I’ll be able to share you with nameless people either,” he says, and Steve blushes because he’s never even thought of that.

“To be honest, I’m not sure I can actually have sex with a man?” he whispers, hyper-aware of all the people around them for the first time in hours. Then he sees the look on Bruce’s face harden and close off, so he adds, shyly, “It sounds bad, right?”

“It sounds a bit confused, but if you want to try the dating thing we can see where it goes.” There isn’t anything that might point to Bruce being upset, but Steve still can feel the ice in his words. He’s not even sure what he said to upset Bruce or if it was even something that he said at all.

“I’d like to.” He still replies as honestly as he can, because he really really really wants to date Bruce and he’s hoping it won’t end in a mess.

Bruce’s lips slightly quirk up and Steve feels his body relax a little bit at that, but he’s still too uncomfortable to try and break the ice - again - and Bruce looks more ill at ease by the minute, so Steve can’t help but groan and say, “Oh hell, I made it more awkward!”

“Yeah, you did!” Bruce says and he lets out a small nervous laugh, then adds, “It could be worse.”

“At least it’s all out,” Steve mutters, trying to keep away the stiffness from his voice and doing an awful job at that anyway.

“Yeah, let’s get out of here too. We can raid Tony’s stash of coffee and drink something decent.” Bruce gets up with confidence and Steve gets back some of his own as he stands up too, still holding his full cup of coffee.

“Yeah, this is awful,” he comments, putting the coffee in the bin on their way out. He looks up just in time to see Bruce hide a tiny smile.

He still counts it as a (mutilated) victory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter took me a bit longer to write because I stumbled on a post on tumblr that said that Cap shouldn't be portrayed as constantly blushing in fanfic because he doesn't in the movie. I got all anxious about this fic but then I noticed the gif set was with the Winter Soldier uniform and at the time Steve isn't in love at all. Like, I think he's one of those people that never get flustered until they fall in love and then they have no idea what to do or say or even think. So this is my headcanon, but btw the blushing won't last much longer, the courtship is coming to an end yay.  
> I hate dating with a passion.


	4. Definitely Some Homo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's _done_! Thanks everyone for sticking with me and the kudos ♥ For days I've been actively hating on this chapter and the kissing that for a second I thought I'd never complete this story and it'd be better that way. 
> 
> Beta'ed by the lovely [seekingsquake](http://archiveofourown.org/users/seekingsquake), thank you dear. I'd be lost (and maiming English) without you!

“We should have pizza dates all the time,” Steve whispers as the movie credits start to roll on the screen and he stretches his back. He can hear some bones pop in his neck, but he wouldn’t mind going back to his less than pleasant position if it meant he could still be in Bruce’s arms.

It’s their third date and the only one that wasn’t awkward or life threatening. He’s not even sure if he regards their second attempt as a date at all, since it ended with an Avengers Assemble call after only five minutes from starting – but he’s not going to lie and say he wasn’t glad for the call, as a walk in the Park had even more probabilities for being awfully awkward than a café.

He’s happy they stayed in and watched Ghostbusters, which is now one of his favourite movies. Bruce had filled in with explanations on the pseudoscience and the paranormal experiments, adding here and there history details he had missed while in the ice.

“I liked it too, yes.” Bruce says, offering the last of the chocolate bars they raided from the kitchen when they’d noticed that popcorn wouldn’t cut it. Steve accepted, but split it in two parts, so that they could share. Bruce smiled sweetly, forcing a smile out of Steve too, not that it was hard, as he’d spent half the movie laughing.

They’re relaxed and comfortable, Steve hasn’t felt this open with someone since before the ice and the atmosphere is cozy, so maybe that’s why, when their eyes meet it’s neither just Steve or Bruce that leans in, but both of them do at the same time and they kiss.

It’s a slow and chaste kiss, just pressing of lips together, but it makes butterflies flutter around in Steve’s stomach, his hands are sweaty and trembling with the imperative of grasping, clutching and never letting Bruce go.

“God,” Steve mumbles a breath away from Bruce’s lips, his hands clutching at his own sweats. He keeps his eyes half-lidded, fixed on Bruce’s lips and he’s not trying hard enough to restrain from kissing him again, because every few seconds he can’t help but lean in and press butterfly kisses on Bruce’s full lips.

“That’s Thor,” Bruce mumbles after Steve puts a bit of space between their lips again. Bruce has always been quite conscious of Steve’s blue eyes, but he’s never seen such hunger and desire in them.

Steve, however, chuckles sweetly, finally giving enough space to Bruce to actually breathe his own air. He didn’t missed oxygen as much as he misses Steve’s proximity.

“Stop ruining the moment,” Steve theatrically moans, making Bruce grin.

“What, don’t take the fun part out of dates,” Bruce replies, his hand tentatively finding its way to Steve’s bent knee, gently brushing against it, and it doesn’t matter how light the touch is or how much fabric’s in between their skin, Steve shudders and craves more.

“Or what?” he asks, and watches Bruce’s devious grin come up on his face - he loves that grin, as it only comes when Bruce is truly having fun.

“Or I’ll just sit here and stare at you, judging extra hard,” Bruce replies with an attitude that vaguely mocks Tony’s when he’s being extra bitchy. Steve can’t help laughing out loud.

“God help me,” he mutters once the laughter subsides. Bruce’s hand was now squeezing Steve’s leg, just above the knee. It's a comforting hold that just shy of actually hurting, as if he was aware of how much Steve craves that feeling on his skin, just how hard he misses it from before the serum, when Bucky didn’t realize his grip was too strong for Steve’s fragile body.

“You’re asking for Thor a lot, tonight,” Bruce mumbles, stroking a few inches of his thigh, never close enough to be improper but enough to be reassuring and arousing at the same time.

Steve, however, huffs out and stills his hand, solidly planting his own on Bruce’s.

“Come on, we both know there’s only one God and he doesn’t dress like Thor,” he argues, because this joke is a bit unsettling. He’s tried to keep his options open, but he was born in 1918 and he has yet to come around people being so quick with religious jokes. He really tries his hardest to just let it go and not care, but… he doesn’t even know why he’s actually telling this to Bruce.

“Let’s not go down this way, I’m agnostic,” Bruce tries gently, squeezing his leg a bit.

“A what?” Steve asks before he can stop himself and Bruce head hits the back of the couch as he looks up to the ceiling and asks: “Seriously, now?”

“Later?” Steve tries, a bit ashamed of having ruined the mood. Bruce just sighs and removes his hands from underneath Seve’s. For the first time in at least ten minutes Steve worries about his sweaty palm again.

“It means I believe there’s a God somewhere, somehow, but I still don’t believe in any religion known,” Bruce explains, still looking at the ceiling, but his hand finds his way back to Steve’s after its owner has readjusted his glasses on his nose. Then Bruce adds, as an afterthought, “to me at least.”

Steve is quite aware of how much Bruce knows, he’s travelled to places he doesn’t even remember or that didn’t exactly existed in his days. Places with cultures deeply and inherently different from their own, and it doesn’t seem like that Bruce doesn’t know all of them. But impossible is what the Avengers do, and they’re all used to things being new and unknown all the time. Maybe Bruce isn’t talking about just Earth.

“Howard didn’t believe at all,” he remembers quietly, because talking of the impossible still brings him back to Howard’s crazy ideas, somehow. “Told me there’s no point in believing in a greater God if you can make whatever he could, too.”

“That’s quite the theory,” Bruce mumbles, deep in thought, but his voice his laced with the disapproval typical of scientists stuck into listening to outdated theories.

“You ruin all the moods and make me ruin them too,” Steve groans after a few minutes they spend in contemplative silence, Bruce probably working the many ways of the universe, while Steve remembers his days mediating between Howard and Bucky’s inconciliable personalities.

“I’m contagious,” Bruce darkly jokes and Steve has punched him in the shoulder before he can stop himself. The punch isn’t hard and Bruce just looks at him unimpressed and Steve can’t say without a doubt he isn’t joking.

Silence clouds the room, and it’s not awkward, it just hurts. Bruce suddenly pins Steve with a calculating look, making Steve squirm after only a few seconds of it.

“You miss him?” Bruce asks out of the blue, and Steve is too dumbstruck to not show his surprise and how much it hurts to even be reminded about it.

Bruce doesn’t show mercy, but he does invite Steve in a half hug that Steve gladly accepts.

“A lot. I miss the Commandos, I miss Peggy, I even miss Phillips,.” Steve mumbles, his head leaning lightly on Bruce shoulder, taking comfort from Bruce’s steady grasp on his opposite shoulder. “Howard hurts the most.”

“Thought that would be your best friend?” Bruce asks speculatively, although he sounds like he doesn’t believe his theory himself. He might have lost everything, but he was never at war, he can’t understand.

Steve, however, gives the most predictable answer. “He’s out there, I don’t know where, but he’s still around. I haven’t lost him.” There’s a steadiness to his voice that moves Bruce to firmly squeeze his shoulder.

“But you also grieved him before the end of the war,” Bruce reminds him and Steve isn’t sure he wants to talk about that hole that Bucky’s death had tore in his soul.

“That is maybe why I don’t… feel so hopeless,” he mutters, walking on the thin thread above the abyss of loneliness he’s always trying to fight. Bucky being alive, dating Bruce, arguing with Tony, fighting with the Avengers is what usually keeps him from falling. “I didn’t exactly get over his death, but I got revenge, I got it twice now,” he says, distancing himself from the abyss. Bruce pulls him against his side and Steve sighs in pleasure, holding on to the small things that keep him going.

“Howard was killed by HYDRA too,” Bruce mercilessly reminds him, but Steve is somehow grateful for being pushed into talking. He sorely needs it and he can’t believe he’s actually telling Bruce what no shrink from S.H.I.E.L.D. or Sam could extract from him.

“I…,” he starts, but he forgets what he wanted to say. He doesn’t think it’s something personal, it has never been about him. “Howard was never a soldier, I never thought for one second he could die. Yes, he was reckless and exhaustingly stubborn, but still, he was a civilian; the worst situation he was ever in was when he flew me thirty miles into enemy territory in one of his planes and quickly got out of there as soon as I was out of sight,” he admits, burying his face into Bruce shirt, against his neck, breathing in his peculiar slightly spiced scent. He’s surprised when it calms him down so easily.

“He wasn’t supposed to die,” Bruce deduces and Steve closes his eyes and breathes slowly. In. Out. In. Out. He can hear his breath tremble and knows Bruce can too, not because it’d be virtually impossible not to notice at such a close proximity, but because Bruce’s grip on Steve’s shoulder is anchoring him to the present with purposeful squeezes. Steve gently kisses the soft fabric of Bruce shirt - one that is probably a gift from Tony, which Bruce only begrudgingly accepted because he knows that’s the only way Tony lets himself show that he cares.

“Yeah…,” he ends, trying not to think too much, having already ruined their movie night with his memories. “I’m sorry.” He mutters nuzzling into Bruce’s shirt, subtly inhaling his scent.

“It’s okay Steve, you need to get it out, keeping it inside only kills you,” Bruce tells him, shifting a bit and when Steve’s ready to let go and take his place back on the couch, a few inches to separate them, Bruce sits against the couch arm and tugs him until Steve his laying partly on him, his head pillowed by Bruce’s chest. Steve takes a moment to appreciate the strong and steady beat of Bruce’s heart, before answering.

“I just… it’s a date.”

“And you’re comfortable and feeling safe. It’s normal for it to come out.” Bruce insists and Steve realizes he really feels safe and sort of sleepy and definitely happy. He hasn’t felt happy in a very long time.

“Yeah, I’m safe here.” he whispers against Bruce’s heartbeat, wishing they were close enough that he could kiss his chest, where his heart is, and get away with it, but he can’t so he has to say it out loud, “Thanks.”

“No, thank you for trusting me enough,” Bruce tells him and his hand comes to hover above Steve’s head, before apparently he decides he doesn’t care, so that the hand starts drifting through his hair.

“I trust you with my life,” Steve tells him, and he’s going to convince Tony not to stick digital post-it notes in those places Bruce lives the most, to remind him they trust him and really like him. He’s pretty sure Tony will throw a fit and do exactly what Steve wants. Reverse psychology, thank you, Howling Commando.

“Sentiment is reciprocated.” Bruce replies, a bit lighter than before. He pulls Steve’s hair gently and Steve bites back a moan, but Bruce isn’t stupid and starts doing it on purpose, giving Steve the goosebumps.

“You know when you need to talk…” Steve starts to offer, not even out of politeness, but because he truly wants to be given a bit more of Bruce’s past by Bruce himself, but his companion stiffens under him and his heart misses a beat under Steve’s ear.

“It’s way too soon for me, Steve,” he warns, and although Steve knew it was coming and it’s nothing personal, it still stings.

“No, I’m not asking, okay, I’m just… offering. It doesn’t have to be today or in a week or three years, but, it’s there, always,” he clarifies, gently kissing Bruce’s chest, because his left side is resting on Bruce’s groin, so they obviously don’t care about propriety.

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep,” Bruce warns him again, but he’s relaxed back and has gotten back to petting Steve’s hair, so he guesses they’re as fine as they can be while walking hand in hand in a minefield.

“Hey, I’m the guy that didn’t die because he had a dance to go.” he jokes to lighten up the mood and Bruce pulls his hair in retaliation. It hurts, but Steve still enjoys it.

“Fine, have it your way,” Bruce surrenders and Steve smiles. He leans up until he can bury his nose in the juncture between neck and shoulder and unashamedly inhale Bruce’s peculiar and calming spicy scent, lightly laced with the sticky aroma of the popcorn and chocolate they’ve been eating all night. He presses down a wet kiss, restrains himself from biting down and sucking a mark on Bruce, until he decides to move us his jaw, straining his ears to take in all the trembling breathes Bruce is slowly exhaling.

The hands in his hair pull him up and away from Bruce’s jaw, where he’s trailing damp kisses, and he can suddenly look at Bruce in the eyes. There’s a hunger underlying his chocolate eyes that makes Steve shiver, and he’s not sure whether out of pleasure or surprise or even fear, it’s so intense.

Bruce leans up and tugs him down, their mouths meeting painfully in the middle, teeth biting into the inside of their own lips. Steve opens his mouth to alleviate the pain of the bruising kiss at the same time that Bruce does, and together they lean away until they’re facing each other again.

Steve nods, just like he does after he’s given his orders on the field, and Bruce smiles, and he’s still smiling when they meet again and Steve pushes him to lay his head back on the couch’s arm. They kiss slowly, keeping the tension dashing through their bodies at bay, and when Bruce’s tongue wets Steve’s lower lip, it’s Steve that takes control and plunges into Bruce mouth, although he’s also the only one moaning at the feeling.

Bruce’s mouth tastes of chocolate and coconut and salty popcorn and it’s warm and wet and perfect. Bruce’s tongue is rough against his own, while scratching with his tongue at his palate seems to make Bruce squirm uneasily. The gums and upside of Bruce’s tongue are smooth and wetter than the rest of his mouth and Steve groans - not entirely in embarrassment - when he feels a bit of saliva escaping their mouth.

When Bruce pushes him on his sternum, Steve comes up for air and he’s tempted to lick the saliva off of Bruce’s jaw. He blushes at his thoughts and he’s still thinking of reaching out behind them to the coffee table to get a napkin when Bruce’s shirt sleeve cleans him and then his own mouth.

Steve really wants to say something because it’s getting awkward but then Bruce smiles while he heaves for breath. Steve’s not even worked up a bit of short breath and he devilishly imagines all the things he could do to Bruce by mixing kissing with his stamina. He kisses Bruce’s smile away, leaning up from his body so he can breathe again, but still peppering kisses on his red kiss-swollen lips.

They don’t need to say anything else until they leave for their rooms, and that’s only to wish each other goodnight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next story will be up in a week or so, and hopefully there'll be more action and we'll leave the romcom behind. Well, at least there'll be Tony. I'm planning to smuggle Clint in too somehow.
> 
> Lastly, I'm working on a kissing meme because I suck at writing kisses so if anyone out there wants to give me pairings (no Loki please) or even prompts, you can inbox me on [tumblr](http://crystalemi.tumblr.com) (anon is on btw).

**Author's Note:**

> If something sounds fishy or not English tell me right away, I'm Italian I don't even know where English lives. Also, (almost) BrEng because I'm lazy and I can't be bothered to learn the difference, I'm sorry.


End file.
